Scandal, treachery and crime are rife in Old London Town. A king blackmailed by his mistress, dark dealings in opium dens, stolen jewels, a missing bride - these are cases so fiendishly complex that only Sherlock Holmes would dare to investigate.

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Scandal, treachery and crime are rife in Old London Town. A king blackmailed by his mistress, dark dealings in opium dens, stolen jewels, a missing bride - these are cases so fiendishly complex that only Sherlock Holmes would dare to investigate.

What a great narrator Derek Jacobi is! His reading of "Sherlock Holmes" unabridged is just flawless. Sherlock Holmes cannot be beat for sheer fun and enjoyment. Try these books in the car -- each story is not too long but still really compelling. There is a reason that Doyle and Holmes are classics -- add Jacobi and you have a winning combination indeed! Elementary!

"Crime is common. Logic is rare. Therefore it is upon the logic rather than upon the crime that you should dwell. You have degraded what should have been a course of lectures into a series of tales."

- Holmes to Watson, "The Adventure of the Copper Beeches"

"I believe in hard work and not in sitting by the fire spinning fine theories."

- Inspector Lestrade, "The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor"

I’ve arrived in my chronological listening to the Sherlock Holmes tales to the 56 short stories that form the real meat of the canon. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes collects the first 12 of these stories and includes several well-known classics, including “A Scandal in Bohemia,” which introduces Irene Adler, the crafty woman who outwits Holmes, and the often-assigned school reading, “The Adventure of the Speckled Band.” (The latter is rightfully familiar, as it contains all the ingredients of the best Holmes stories: a brisk plot, brooding atmosphere, a fiendishly clever crime, and Holmes and Watson risking life and limb for a client.)

Here are tales of a priceless jewel found in the throat of a Christmas goose (“The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle”), of long-simmering resentment and revenge (“The Boscombe Valley Mystery”), of an inexplicable disappearance (“The Man with the Twisted Lip”) and of a complicated and hilarious diversion meant to facilitate robbery (“The Adventure of the Red-Headed League”). Each story lasted about 45 minutes to an hour – the perfect length for my commute – so I looked forward for several days to hearing the details of a new case presented in the morning and finding out how Holmes unraveled the mystery in the evening.

One story in particular (“The Adventure of the Copper Beeches”) contained enough Gothic elements – dark family secrets, inexplicable behavior, a locked wing of rooms and a plucky, resourceful governess – to fill an entire novel. I would happily have spent more time in the company of Violet Hunter, Holmes’s perceptive and brave client. She deserved a book of her own.

A few of the solutions seemed a bit cliché, which I attribute to the legions of imitators who have followed Holmes, and to how indelibly these characters have been a part of popular culture for nearly 130 years. Only one story frustrated me outright with its weak ending (“The Five Orange Pips”). Holmes solved some of the cases while barely leaving his Baker Street rooms, but my favorites involved him and his trusty Watson conducting more active investigations in and around London.

I enjoyed Derek Jacobi’s performance once again (although he really should avoid doing American accents!) Besides his familiar, pitch-perfect readings of Holmes and Watson, I particularly liked his characterizations of the pompous King of Bohemia and self-important “Noble Bachelor.” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle poked fun at the nobility with these two clients, both puffed up with pride but inwardly dull and vacuous.

Derek Jacobi delivers Sherlock in fantastic form, the adventures seem short to begin with but as you get further into the book the stories get longer and more involved, which is quite a stroke of genius by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. the audio presentation sounds very authentic and as sherlock should be (I still only ever picture sherlock as jeremy brett), I would recommend this version of the adventures over any others.

I love this book! I am a huge Sherlock Holmes fan and anxiously await the 'wrap up' (as I call it) to see the small parts of the story that I missed leading to the 'bad guy'. This is a great book with a collection of SH stories that are every enjoyable.

These stories show Sherlock Holmes playful and enigmatic and passionate and inventive. They are sometimes truly bizarre and sometimes trivial - but, as Watson observes, Holmes is not interested in 'important' or 'high profile' cases, just in the ones which will keep away his dreaded ennui. Watson is a good commentator to his friend's adventures - measured, compassionate, patient and Sherlock can try the mildest temper; but there is genuine affection between these two which helps make Holmes' mercurial, infuriating and elusive behaviour entertaining instead of insufferable!
Mr Jacobi is a fruity presence in the book - his reading of Watson's character is a little querulous for my taste; I prefer something a bit more muscular!

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Peter

Beulah, United Kingdom

11/5/09

Overall

"Excellent series of 12 mystery stories"

I had not read any Sherlock Holmes before, but will now be buying more of these excellent books from Audible. The stories are all about an hour long and each one is superbly written and wonderfully read by Derek Jacobi. They are a varied selection and have introduced me to the wonderful deductive skills of the original Holmes and the awe of his endearing sidekick Watson. I can now understand why Mr Holmes was and is such a phenomenon.

10 of 12 people found this review helpful

Mrs

Harrogate, United Kingdom

6/30/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"Brilliant"

You know Sherlock Holmes. You've seen adaptations on TV, you know his stories. But, listening/reading the books is just wonderful. By reading, you gain a deeper understanding of Holmes, of Watson, of Victorian England and Derek Jacobi is an amazing narrator. He is perfect for the job. So even though you may be familiar with the stories, have a listen and instead of being preoccupied with 'who done it' (cos you probably know already), enjoy the journey and allow Holmes to lead you there in his own unique way.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

G

7/24/15

Overall

Performance

Story

"Five Star Narration"

Jacobi's range of voices and skillful acting bring Holmes and Watson to life dazzlingly. And he has wonderful material to work with, the episodic nature of this collection of short stories lending itself well to his talents.

Where does The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Though I'd read all of these stories before, they are simply classics & Derek Jacobi's delivery is as slick & as fitting a Watson performance as you could hope for. Had I not read it before however, I would rank it as one of, if possibly THE best.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes?

Hard to say. Each individual story has its own magic & is memorable in its own right.

Which character – as performed by Derek Jacobi – was your favourite?

Dr Watson is of course the most important character for the narrator to 'nail' in any Holmes story, which Jacobi does excellently. That said, he does bring a little of something else to the others, in differentiating them from his Watson, so that works nicely too.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Each story is definitely worth listening to in one go- each is 45-60 mins long in general. To listen to too many in one go would rather spoil it perhaps? I think perhaps it is best to treat this audiobook as a selection box to pick at every now and then, rather than a bar to scoff in one go!

Any additional comments?

If you haven't encountered Sherlock Holmes yet, this is a great introduction to him & his adventures.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Eve

birmingham, United Kingdom

7/23/14

Overall

Performance

Story

"Brilliant narrator."

What made the experience of listening to The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes the most enjoyable?

Derek Jacobi is an excellent narrator for this type of book. I was engaged the whole way through. And disappointed when I reached the last chapter.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I tried to make this book last as long as possible! All the chapters are individual cases so it was easy to break the listening down and enjoy this book over two weeks. Excellent stuff!

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

P

GUERNSEY, United Kingdom

5/11/14

Overall

Performance

Story

"Easy Listening"

After finishing listening to an epic story of 40+ hours this collection of short stories made a pleasant change. I have now put all the Sherlock Holmes books narrated by Derek Jacobi in my wish list! His narration was simply perfect.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Daniela

Ashtead, United Kingdom

12/26/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"If you like SH you won't be disappointed."

Great compilation of SH tales, nicely narrated.

A great collection well worth a listen. Not one tale failed to please.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Miss

Saffron Walden, United Kingdom

8/11/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"Fantastic"

Just perfect, exactly what you would want. The original brilliant stories narrated excellently by Derek Jacobi who does voices just different enough to be distinguishable without being silly. Top marks.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

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